Forest Thomer, of Cold Springs, Ky., is scheduled to appear in a Cincinnati court Wednesday, and could face as much as 30 days in jail if convicted of the fourth-degree misdemeanor charge, a court official said.

Thomer said he asked CIncinnati public park passerby if they wanted to "laugh at the crippled girl," Ally Bruener, of Alexandria, Ky.

Bruener, who is wheelchair-bound, would follow up the introduction with a joke about her next show, she said.

According to court records, Thomer went too far. He allegedly shouted profanity and walked into people. He "persisted in yelling and shouting, causing annoyance and alarm to others," according to the Hamilton County Municipal Court complaint.

"We were just going up to people and asking the question," said Thomer.

"You can't just arrest people or have them arrested just because you don't like what they are saying."

Thomer would also record some of the people's responses to use on Bruener's website under the heading "I laughed at the crippled girl."

A Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber spokesperson said Thomer was being disruptive at the weekly Party in the Park event.

"We don't allow anyone to conduct marketing at our events without prior authorization or take video of our guests for commercial purposes without their approval," chamber spokesman Chris Kemper said.

Both individuals said the phrasing was not intended to demean Bruener, but was a way to promote her website and next performance.Bruener said she tries to remove stigma from the word "crippled" by using humor.

"People are trying to be too politically correct and force us to be as well," she said.